In book twelve, Odysseus returns to
Elpanor to bury his dead crewmate. There he and his crew stay overnight with
Circe, she tells Odysseus of the obstacles he must face before returning to
Ithaca, such as Scylla and Charybdis. Once past the initial obstacles they stay
for a month on Helios’ island with his sacred animals. Although instructed not
to, Odysseus’ men slaughter them for food, this results in all of them dying
except for Odysseus.
Why do
you think Odysseus went out of his way to return to his dead crewmate in order
to give him a proper burial?
Odysseus
has shown that he can get through almost any physical obstacle. After this
book, what physiological obstacles do you think he will have to pass?
Odysseus has shown great amounts of courage, but respect for those who show courage. Elpenor was a man under his service who was loyal, brave and modest. If you remember last book, Elpenor asked Odysseus to bury him as his last request. I feel massive respect for Odysseus that I did not before. He seems changed after his visit to the Underworld, more penitent, more respectful of everything he hears and everything he does. Odysseus then faces Scylla and Charybdis, he is forced between a rock and a hard place and eventually decides to avoid Charybdis and approach Scylla. He loses 6 men, but in the end he loses them all anyway. Odysseus has seen and experienced a lot in his time at sea, and I think he can take a lot more. I'm routing for him to go all the way.
ReplyDeleteOdysseus is a loyal captain who cares deeply about all of his shipmates. He went back to give Elpanor a proper burial because it was the last favor he asked of Odysseus when he visited the underworld. Also, Odysseus probably blames himself for any crew men who have died along the journey because he is the captain of the ship and so he is in charge of everybody. He also feels bad because people like Elpenor who died on the journey survived a long, hard war in Troy, and wanted to return to their home with their family, but instead go through more struggle and cannot see them again. I think that the Gods are not done with Odysseus, the man of twists and turns. Poseidon still wants to stop Odysseus from returning home because he blinded Poseidon's son, but Athena is trying her best to get him home without feeling the wrath of her uncle. This will translate into much more obstacles up until he gets home safely or dies along the way.
ReplyDeleteOdysseus is respectful and faithful, and since it was Elpanor’s last wish to be buried and given proper funeral rites, he carried out that wish. Also, Elpanor was a brave and good man, and deserved a proper funeral and some respect. He had also given Odysseus advice and a glimpse into life back in Ithaca, and burying him properly was the least he could do in return.
ReplyDeleteOdysseus has faced many physical challenges throughout the story, but now he has faced some mental challenges as well. He bravely insisted upon hearing the Siren’s song, but was wise enough to make sure his crew would tie him to the boat so he would not run away. He braved Scylla and stood strong against fear of her. However, he will have to face even more challenges to come. There is the major challenge of not having a crew, and seeing each one die terribly can damage ones mind greatly. He is then washed up on Calypso’s island, where there is little hope of seeing his family again. Without hope, life becomes a challenge, but Odysseus carries on. Thus, no matter what is thrown at Odysseus, he manages to pull through.
Although Odysseus' men disregarded his orders by hunting down the animals on Helios' island, he still needs their help. After Elpenor's death Odysseus holds a proper burial ceremony because he needs to keep the other crew members happy. Without them, his journey to Ithaca would be even harder than it is, which is almost impossible. If he wants to return back to his kingdom and family, he has to keep his crew mates satisfied. Going forward, Odysseus will have many physiological issues. He will be forever scarred from his encounters with the underworld, the cyclops, and Scylla. Many of his crew mates, who were some of his best friends, were killed in front of his own eyes. Odysseus will not only have to cope with future physical struggles, but also with his mental ones, which will be much harder to deal with.
ReplyDeleteEven though odysseus and hia men killed or hunted down the animals, he still needs the gods help. Odysseus went out of his way to give his fellow crewmate a proper burial because that is the right thing to do. And seeing odysseus do this i gained much more respect for him. He is a loyal trustworthy person now, and is doing the right thing. Odysseus had gone through many obstacles during his journey. I beleive this will make him a stronger person. He may be getting frustrated now, but in the end everything happened for a reason, and will shape him the way he will be. Some of the obstacles the gods put in front of him may be to much, but the gods are just messing with him, and he has gotten through every obstacle so far. These obstacles are going to maybe help in the end of the book.
ReplyDeleteI think that when Odysseus went out of his way to bury his friend, it was out of complete respect. Odysseus' shipmates have gone through the same events that Odysseus has been through, and they have struggled as well. Odysseus realizes this and I think he is besing very respectful to his crew mates by this act of kindness. After this book, I think that Odysseus will face even greater challenges. Through these first twelve books, Odysseus' obstacles are very extreme and I think things will get worse. Odysseus has a tendency to attract the gods attention, and Poseidon still holds a grudge against him. The only person that Odysseus can really trust now is Athena, who is trying her hardest to get him home safely. Odysseus will struggle throughout the rest of the books, but he will have some help along the way.
ReplyDeleteOdysseus went back to give Elpenor a proper burial because Odysseus is loyal to all of his crew mates and Elpenor was a good friend of his. Although it may have been out of his way and caused a longer journey, this didn't matter to Odysseus. He also knows the chance of him getting home relies mostly on his crew mates since they do most of the work. To make sure his crew mates stay loyal to him, he needs to return the kindness. Odysseus as so far been through many physical obstacles, as well as some mental obstacles. After he has been away from home for so long, he will probably have trouble ever feeling like he is safe all the time. At this point, he doesn't know if the Gods like him or not, and when he finally gets home he will probably never be able to feel like he is secure. He has been close to getting home multiple times, only to have the Gods take it all away from home. For all he knows, this could easily happen again and again.
ReplyDeleteOdysseus arranged for the burial of his crewmate as a sign for respect. After all, Odysseus' crewmates are risking their own lives and putting themselves in peril in order to help him reach home. Odysseus has been through some of the most brutal storms, has faced strong opponents in fierce battles, and is constantly being set back by these forces, the gods, that have much more control over his future than he does. But he goes through all the pain in order to get back home. He now must realize that even when he gets home, all the pain in his life won't suddenly disappear. He will go home to find his wife surrounded by greedy, arrogant suitors who have tried to seduce her and have eaten his food, lived in his house, and trashed Ithaca. Killing the suitors will be easy, but dealing with Penelope won't. Of course she will be glad that he is home and safe, it will be hard for them to put this behind them and pretend it never happened. At first, they will probably seem like strangers to each other. Sometimes the pain we feel emotionally hurts much more than what we go through physically, and Odysseus must prepare himself for the more "mental" battles that are in store.
ReplyDeleteThroughout the story we have learned about Odysseus' loyalty towards his comrades, and clearly this was why he went back to give Elpenor a proper burial, as he had requested in the last book. In order for Odysseus to get back to Ithaca safely, or even just by staying alive, he needs his crew. Without his crew he wouldn't have been able to face obstacles in the past and he wouldn't be able to move forward. Odysseus needs to do whatever he can to keep his crew mates happy. Odysseus has seen such horrifying things and has been through so much in these books, that it will definitely be hard for him to live past it. Even though he is very brave, his past will still haunt him and will always been scarred and never fell 100% okay and safe.
ReplyDeleteOdysseus goes back and gives Elpenor a proper burial because he feels that is the right thing to do and I think he feels that he would want someone to do that for him if it had been him that had died. In addition, Odysseus may also have given him a proper burial to show to his crew that he is loyal to each and every one of them. He is going to have a long a difficult journey home and he must be able to depend fully on his crew and this is one way that he may be able to build trust with them.
ReplyDeleteAs Odysseus's journey continues he is going to encounter not only physical but psychological obstacles. So far, he has displayed great physical and mental strength but the long and strenuous journey may prove to difficult for him to overcome. I think he will have to deal with if he blames himself for the death of his comrades and if he could have done anything to perhaps save them. Odysseus must stay mentally tough in order to reach Ithaca
Odysseus decides to give Elpenor a proper burial because , as shown earlier in this tale is a man of good moral values and sticks to what he believes in. Because of this, he gives Elpenor the proper burial because it was the right thing to do. Also, Odysseus knew that this would have an affect on his crew, who knew that they could have died just as easily as Elpenor, so this reassured them that they too would have a proper burial.
ReplyDeleteI believe that once Odysseus returns home he will both benefit and suffer from his experiences. Because of what he has gone through, he knows that he can handle more things which is a good mindset to be in during tough situations. On the other hand, he has seen some gruesome things, which can not leave a man untouched. Therefore, he will remember certain horrible events, which in turn will haunt him.